High wind occurred on Lopez Island, one of the San Juans.
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Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS SEW wrote it up.
High wind occurred on Lopez Island, one of the San Juans.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Seattle, WA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 4, 9:20 AM PST, 2 hours 2 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA
920 AM PST FRI MAR 4 2016
.SYNOPSIS...A SERIES OF FRONTS WILL BRING RAIN AT TIMES OVER THE
NEXT WEEK.
&&
.SHORT TERM...A FRONT IS CURRENTLY BRINGING RAIN TO THE COAST. THE
FRONT WILL SLOWLY SHIFT INLAND TODAY WITH RAIN FOR THE PUGET
SOUND REGION MOSTLY HOLDING OFF UNTIL TONIGHT. THE ACTUAL FRONT
WILL PUSH THROUGH THE INTERIOR LATER TONIGHT WITH RAIN CHANGING TO
SHOWERS SATURDAY MORNING.
ANOTHER FRONTAL SYSTEM WILL QUICKLY SPREAD RAIN INTO THE AREA
LATER IN THE DAY SATURDAY WITH RAIN ALL AREAS SATURDAY NIGHT.
SUNDAY WILL A SHOWERY DAY WITH AN UPPER TROUGH OVER THE AREA.
THERE MIGHT EVEN BE A FEW THUNDERSTORMS.
IT WILL BE BREEZY TO WINDY AT TIMES THE NEXT FEW DAYS AS FRONTS
MOVE THROUGH...ESPECIALLY COAST AND NORTH INTERIOR. THE MOUNTAINS
WILL PICK UP SEVERAL INCHES OF SNOW TONIGHT BUT SNOW LEVELS WILL
BE FAIRLY HIGH...AROUND 5000 FEET. SCHNEIDER
.LONG TERM...MONDAY WILL BE A RELATIVELY QUIET WEATHER DAY WITH A
SPLIT FLOW UPPER TROUGH OVER THE AREA FOR A FEW SHOWERS. A FRONT
WILL BRING RAIN TUESDAY. ANOTHER FRONTAL SYSTEM WILL BRING RAIN
WEDNESDAY AND WEDNESDAY NIGHT. SCHNEIDER
&&
.AVIATION...STRONG AND ENERGETIC SW JET STREAM FLOW ALOFT FOR THE
NEXT 30 HOURS...WITH A STATIONARY FRONT OFF THE COAST THROUGH THIS
EVNG. THIS WILL FOCUS RAIN OVER THE OLYMPIC PENINSULA TODAY...THEN
RAIN WILL SHOVE INLAND TONIGHT. DESPITE THE RAIN...A DRYING EASTERLY
COMPONENT TO THE SFC WINDS WILL KEEP CIGS ABOVE 030...EXCEPT IN
THE HEAVIEST RAIN. WINDS ALOFT WILL BE STRONG...BUT PARTICULARLY SO
ALONG THE COAST...WITH 925-850 MB WINDS PEAKING AT HQM IN THE
50-65 KT RANGE THIS EVNG.
KSEA...THE DAYLIGHT HOURS WILL GENERALLY BE RAIN-FREE...WITH JUST
A FEW RAINDROPS AT TIMES COMING OUT OF A MID-LEVEL CLOUD
DECK...GENERALLY ABOVE 080. A FRONT WILL TRY TO SHOVE INLAND THIS
EVNG...BRINGING A BETTER CHANCE OF RAIN STARTING ARND 04Z...BUT
CIGS WILL STILL REMAIN AT OR ABOVE 050. LIGHT EASTERLY AND
SOUTHERLY SFC WIND FOR THE NEXT 24 HOURS. HANER
&&
.MARINE...A NEARLY STATIONARY FRONT STRETCHES SW FROM CENTRAL
VANCOUVER ISLAND TODAY...WITH STRONG E/SE GRADIENTS OVER THE
WATERS...WITH GALES IN E/SE-WIND PRONE LOCATIONS. A 990 MB LOW
PRESSURE WAVE WILL RIDE NE ALONG THE FRONT THIS EVENING...BRINGING
A CORRESPONDING PEAK IN WIND. COMBINED SEAS 15 TO 20 FEET TODAY
AND THIS EVENING. LOOKS LIKE A SHORT LULL OF A FEW HOURS ON SAT
MORNING WHEN WINDS OVER ALL WATERS WILL FALL BELOW SMALL CRAFT
STRENGTH. THEN ON SAT EVNG...A DEEPENING 975 MB LOW WILL MOVE DUE
NORTH ABOUT HALFWAY BETWEEN THE COAST AND 130W...BRINGING ANOTHER
ROUND OF GALES TO THE COAST AND STRAIT.
&&
.HYDROLOGY...RAINFALL FROM A FRONT LATER TODAY AND TONIGHT WILL
LIKELY PUSH THE SKOKOMISH RIVER IN MASON COUNTY ABOVE FLOOD STAGE
AGAIN TONIGHT. A FLOOD WATCH IS CURRENTLY IN EFFECT.
ADDITIONAL WET WEATHER SUNDAY THROUGH TUESDAY WILL MAINTAIN A
THREAT OF FLOODING FOR THE EXCEPTIONALLY FLOOD PRONE SKOKOMISH
RIVER AT TIMES. MODELS SHOW A POSSIBLE ATMOSPHERIC RIVER EVENT NEXT
WEDNESDAY OR THURSDAY. THE SOLUTIONS ARE NOT IN GOOD AGREEMENT BUT
THEY POINT TO AT LEAST THE POTENTIAL FOR MORE WIDESPREAD RIVER
FLOODING LATER NEXT WEEK.
&&
.SEW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WA...FLOOD WATCH FROM 6 PM PST THIS EVENING THROUGH SATURDAY MORNING
FOR HOOD CANAL AREA-LOWER CHEHALIS VALLEY AREA-OLYMPICS.
PZ...GALE WARNING UNTIL 6 AM PST SATURDAY FOR COASTAL WATERS FROM
CAPE FLATTERY TO JAMES ISLAND 10 TO 60 NM-COASTAL WATERS
FROM CAPE FLATTERY TO JAMES ISLAND OUT 10 NM-COASTAL WATERS
FROM JAMES ISLAND TO POINT GRENVILLE 10 TO 60 NM-COASTAL
WATERS FROM JAMES ISLAND TO POINT GRENVILLE OUT 10 NM-
COASTAL WATERS FROM POINT GRENVILLE TO CAPE SHOALWATER 10
TO 60 NM-COASTAL WATERS FROM POINT GRENVILLE TO CAPE
SHOALWATER OUT 10 NM-WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF
JUAN DE FUCA.
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR ROUGH BAR UNTIL 6 AM PST SATURDAY FOR
GRAYS HARBOR BAR.
GALE WARNING UNTIL 3 AM PST SATURDAY FOR EAST ENTRANCE U.S.
WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA-NORTHERN INLAND WATERS
INCLUDING THE SAN JUAN ISLANDS.
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY UNTIL 3 AM PST SATURDAY FOR ADMIRALTY INLET-
CENTRAL U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA.
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FROM NOON TODAY TO 3 AM PST SATURDAY FOR
PUGET SOUND AND HOOD CANAL.
&&
WWW.WEATHER.GOV/SEATTLE
YOU CAN SEE AN ILLUSTRATED VERSION OF THIS DISCUSSION AT
WWW.WEATHER.GOV/SEATTLE/GAFD/LATEST_WEBAFD.HTMLThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Lopez Island recorded 40+ mph sustained wind over a few hours.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Washington in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyWarnings in Washington, March 2016
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 615023.